1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to electrical cord connectors, in general, and, specifically, to interlocking male and female connectors to reduce the chance of accidental separation of one from the other.
2. Description of the Related Art
Both homeowners and contractors have suffered from the inconvenience of connector separation when they try to get the electrical appliance or tool, plugged into either a wall plug or into one or more extension cords, to reach just another couple of inches only to have the appliance or tool shut off. Many connectors have been modified in several different ways in the past. They have been tied together, looped around each other, wired together and placed in containers that try to force the two connectors to remain together.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,069,634 to M. J. Chiarolanzio on Dec. 3, 1991 for a Snap Lock Extension Cord and Power Tool Connector describes a female connector having a lip on each of two prongs that are releasably inserted into a set of locking slots in the male connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,129,836 to N. E. Ursich on Jul. 14, 1992 for a Self-Locking Female Receptor for Electric Cord shows a female receptor into which a male receptor may be releasably locked by balls, located in the female receptor, biased into the holes in the male prongs.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,139,438 to D. P. Gaffney on Aug. 18, 1992 for an Extension Cord Receptacle describes a female connector having legs connected in a "V" with the free ends springingly biased apart to frictionally grasp the prongs of the male connector.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,194,013 to M. Propp on Mar. 16, 1993 for a Lock Plug shows a locking electrical male plug having a key to cause an end on the prongs to expand within a female receptor to reduce accidental removal of the male plug from the female receptor.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,219,304 to C. H. Lin on Jun. 15, 1993 for an Electrical Plug describes a male plug that keeps the prongs and wires leading to them separate from each other by molded plastic channels. The plug is two-piece to assist in connecting the wires to the prongs.
The present invention recognized the problem inherent in many of these devices. Many of them tried to restrain two linearly connected end-pieces from separating when a linear force was applied. They did not address the problem at the root of the problem which was the inadequate initial design of the basic connectors. The present invention redistributes the force vectors usually found in the common connector when its two ends are pulled 180 degrees away from each other and is designed to cause the connectors to become even more secure in their connection as the opposing linear forces are applied. Greater resistance to disconnection must be overcome before the present connectors can be separated. As the electrical cords are pulled apart in opposite directions, the force of separation must be large enough to rotate the connectors and to pull the prongs out of the receptors from a position angular to the plane of the opposing linear cord forces to a position where the prongs and receptors are parallel to the plane of the cord forces. To supplement the resistance of connector separation in the present invention, there are interlocking feet and channels. This results in a male and female connector that will often bind the two connector together even tighter until a force great enough to completely tear the two connectors apart is reached.